My heart fluttered in anticipation as I listened to what he was saying...:"I don't know how to say this..but ever since I first met you, I knew that I've always loved you...":. .:Riku/OC:. NewYearOneShot

Disclaimer: No, the start of 2009 does not signify that I own Kingdom Hearts now. All I own is my OC.

"Come on, Aislinn! Hurry up! We're gonna be late!"

"I'm coming, Kairi! Just hold on a second!"

I grumbled, messing with my stubborn curly auburn hair. Damn it. It wasn't staying the way I wanted it to. There. Finally. That one freakin' curl that wouldn't stay in place finally relented. I breathed a sigh of relief, and checked my appearance once again in the full-length mirror.

My hair was curled into ringlets, the cascade of auburn framing my face. I was wearing hardly any makeup, except for a light, glittery eyeshadow that brought out my aquamarine eyes. The dress I was wearing was simple—strapless, made of white satin, reaching down to my knees. The three-inch heels I was wearing were a beautiful cream color, but I could tell that my feet were gonna hurt like hell by the end of the night. Smiling, I ran out of Kairi's room, nearly falling down the stairs, only to meet an impatient Kairi at the doorway.

"Finally! You take more time than I do getting ready! And that's saying something..."

I giggled, walking out the door. "Come on, Princess. It's New Year's Eve. Shouldn't we be happy? Besides, a couple more minutes and you'll be able to spend the evening with your precious Sora!"

Kairi glared at me, and I could only laugh. She must have been blind not to notice that they both loved each other.

My stomach twisted in anticipation and nervousness as I contemplated the fact that less than five minutes from now, Kairi and I would both be at the New Year's Eve party that Selphie—one of Kairi's best friends—had decided to put together on a whim. She had invited everybody that she knew—and Kairi had been ecstatic when both of us had received an invitation. Sora soon received one, along with Riku.

Riku. His name, unfortunately, was the reason I was nervous. He would be there, and I wasn't sure I was ready to face him in three-inch heels and a strapless dress. I couldn't do it. Ever since I had first wound up on Destiny Islands, I had been absolutely amazed by this sixteen-year old boy with those aquamarine eyes who saved me from the darkness. Although I had been reluctant to admit it at first, I slowly fell in love with him.

Kairi was dragging me to this party based on one condition: I had to kiss him at midnight. No ifs, ands, or buts. When she first proposed the idea, I became absolutely livid and ignored her for two whole days. But the more I thought about it, the nicer the idea sounded. I had never kissed anyone before, let alone on New Year's Eve, and as I walked the familiar path to the paopu-tree island on the beach, my breathing became erratic, and I seriously considered running back to Kairi's house at breakneck speed and locking myself in her room until the whole party ordeal was over. Kairi must have sensed this, because in the instant we reached the crowd lining the shoreline, she grabbed my arm tightly, and leaned over to whisper something in my ear. "Don't even think about it, Aislinn. We talked about this."

I whimpered in defeat, but my eyes scanned the crowd, looking for that familiar face, and his silver hair....

Damn it! This wasn't helping....

"Kairi! You finally made it!"

As if on cue, the blue-eyed, brown-haired Sora bounded up to us, followed by an ever-impassive Riku.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in....

"What took you so long? And who'd you bring—Aislinn!?" Sora and Riku finally reached us, and as soon as Sora laid eyes on me, his mouth hung open in surprise. I blushed, and Kairi raised a hand to smack Sora on the back of the head.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"For being stupid! Come on, I haven't seen Selphie in a long time!" Kairi winked at me—I shot her a Death Glare—and dragged Sora down to the island to see her friend.

Which left me and Riku. Alone. By ourselves. With my overreacting heart.

Peachy. Just peachy.

I tried saying something—honestly, I did. But the thoughts in my head wouldn't form coherent sentences, and I felt like someone was cutting off my air supply.

I snapped out of my daze at the sound of his velvet voice, meeting his eyes hesitantly. He was smiling at me, and I returned it with a smile of my own. Stepping forward, Riku extended a hand to me like he had so many times before—and grinned.

"Should we get this over with or what?"

I took his hand and my heart skipped a couple of beats as our fingers entwined. Remembering to breathe, I stepped closer to him, and hand in hand, we walked towards the paopu tree.

"Can you believe it? Another year's already over..." I gazed sadly out at the ocean, the moonlight reflecting off the pale blue water. Riku merely laughed quietly at my comment, his gaze directed at the sky.

"That's what we always say. And then the next year comes, and we say it over again."

"So do you not look forward to New Year's or what?"

Riku shifted on the branch of the paopu tree, turning to face me. "Well, it's just—most holidays start off as something that's memorable. But as time goes by, I guess we start to forget why we're celebrating it in the first place."

"So...why do you celebrate New Year's then?"

Riku paused for a moment, thinking. "I guess...I use this time to remember everything that's happened in the past, and....I think on how I can start over. You know, a..fresh start. But I don't ever forget the things that have happened or...the people I've met." His aquamarine eyes flashed to mine, and we stared at each other for a few moments, but I broke the silence, averting my eyes from his.

"If there was anything you could change, or do differently, what would it be?"

"I would've..." Riku suddenly paused, but took a deep breath and continued. "I would've treated someone a lot differently. And I would've...told them some things that I've kept secret for a while."

I tilted my head to the side, interested. "What...would you have told them?"

Surprisingly, Riku blushed, unable to meet my eyes.

"Hey, everyone, thirty seconds to the new year!"

30...

"Riku, what would you have done?"

27...

In a burst of confidence, I took Riku's hand. "You can tell me, you know."

24...

Among the shouts and cheers of the group down the beach, Riku and I were the exact opposite: speechless and quiet.

15...

Suddenly, Riku brought a hand to the side of my face, pulling me closer to him. I blinked in surprise, but I didn't pull back. My heart fluttered again. What...was he doing?

10...

"Aislinn, I..."

9...

"I don't know how to say this..."

8...

"And I'm afraid you'll get mad at me..."

7...

"But ever since I first met you, I knew that..."

6...

5....

4...

"I've always loved you."

The next three seconds may have possibly been the best three seconds of my life. Because in those moments, I didn't hear the shouts of people counting down the New Year, or fireworks exploding in the distance.

Because I was kissing Riku. And he was kissing me back. Our lips moved in perfect synchronization, and I could feel him smile while a joyful tear trickled down my cheek.

3...

2...

We both broke the kiss, staring into each other's eyes. Normally, I would've slapped Riku because of the smirk on his face, but instead, I just smiled.

1...

Kissing him again, I raised my lips to his ear, only to whisper three words.

"Happy New Year..."

(1) For all of you that can't read without spaces...XD

Oh my gosh, what am I going to do, I'm just standing here like an idiot, and--

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